The client was encouraged to buy extra acres to ensure that the magnificent views to the eastern flanks of the Western Ghats (hill range) would not be blocked by future developments of other parties.

Coutralam is a fascinating area because it was once the summer seat of the maharaja of Travancore - the family's colonial style palace still exists.
The town is a two-hour drive from Madurai and a three-hour drive from the southern tip of India. Half-way one finds the incredible wooden palace of Padmanabhapuran, built during the Travancore Dynasty (16th-19th Century) when the capital of Travancore was located in deep South Kerala.

The main house took four years to build due to the sodden nature of the soil. Extensive sub-soil drainage was needed and huge screen fences had to be erected, to protect the plants from the wind in the monsoon season.

This part of Tamil Nadu (in which Coutralam now sits) is very scenic and one finds many temples and villages of particular architctural merit. There are also enclaves of wealthy Brahman haveli (villas) down the road near Tenkasi.
Like most South Indian communities the villages of this area ingratiate nature into their lives and homes. This custom was also the inspiration for the indoor-outdoor nature of the Wisma Mutiara project (the owners chose a Malay name).
The property was chosen for its proximity to several waterfalls with "magical and medicinal" properties. Nowadays, the falls are top tourist attractions.
My client, a wealthy industrialist from nearby Chennai, who comes by helicopter, loves the cool breezes for which the area is famous.
He spends most of the year in Dubai and is tired of airless, desert climes.
He wanted a "Bali House" but I felt that a "stately Kerala -colonial" home with Balinese and Javanese accents would be more in keeping with the pastoral landscape and the area's traditions.

The guest house is self-contained.

I encouraged the client to buy extra acres to ensure that the magnificent views to the eastern flanks of the Western Ghats would not be spoiled. (The term "ghat" means a hill. hill range, route through hills, or a pass.)
The client made several trips to Bali to buy antiques for the house and one trip to Jakarta to purchase some of Indonesian designer Jaya Ibrahim's neo-colonial Javanese furniture at his shop - "Solo".

The porch of the main house.

The house took four years to build - India is always slow. The site was a bit difficult due to the sodden nature of the soil in a waterfall catchment area. For example, extensive sub-soil drainage was needed and huge screen fences had to be erected, to protect the plants from the wind in the monsoon season.

The interior wall finishes were realised by Dewa Antara of Bali and the gardens by Wayan Lagawa who also did the Taj Green Cove in Kovalam, on the Kerala coast, as well as the Taj Exotica gardens in the Maldives.
This South Indian colonial style house functions as a private home and is actually located within a parkland with a view of a lake.

The client made several trips to Bali to buy antique for the house and one trip to Jakarta to purchase some of Jaya Ibrahim’s neo-colonial Javanese furniture. Note the main doors as viewed from the interior.	The client got his desired Bali-look in decorative door accents and courtyard touches. The interior wall finishes were realized by Dewa Antara of Bali.
The interior shutters are all made of Burmese teak.	The dado decorative paint finish on the walls is of Islamic Persian design.

There are arches on all the colonnades and corridors.
The interior shutters are all made of Burmese teak. Tachans contractor were the millwork specialists and main contractor Vinod Mathews is the principal. He has a passion for Kerala architecture.
The client got his desired Bali-look in decorative door accents and courtyard touches.
But I wanted the country house to'be culturally and geographically referenced.

Rather than a “Bali House”, Made Wijaya recommended a “stately” home befitting the South Indian Colonial style in keeping with the area’s local traditions.